Theo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.org.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield launched a campaign Tuesday to “free” the ice cream company they founded from its current owner Unilever, claiming the larger corporation has stifled the Vermont-based outfit’s political messaging and actions.
The campaign includes two open letters authored by the Ben & Jerry’s founders, which address their concerns to the current owners and prospective investors. The move comes after years of conflict in and out of court between Ben & Jerry’s and the London-based Unilever, and seeks to mobilize public support to pressure the larger company to allow its subsidiary to regain independence.
The letter to current board members is addressed to the Magnum Ice Cream Company, an emerging spin-off entity which will own a number of brands including Ben & Jerry’s, Unilever announced last year. In the statement, the founders argued that since Unilever purchased Ben & Jerry’s in 2000, “the commitments made to us, our employees, and our customers (have been) eroded.”
In particular, the founders wrote, the company’s “freedom to pursue its social mission,” which the founders say was enshrined in the original sale, has been infringed on a number of occasions in relation to “issues such as Gaza, indigenous rights, the Trump administration, and DEI.”
Jerry Greenfield did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a statement to VTDigger on Wednesday, a spokesperson for Unilever said, “Ben & Jerry’s is a proud part of The Magnum Ice Cream Company and is not for sale.” The spokesperson added that Unilever remains “committed to Ben & Jerry’s unique three-part mission — product, economic and social — and look(s) forward to building on its success as an iconic, much-loved business.”
Ben & Jerry’s sued Unilever last year for allegedly trying to block the smaller company’s statements on Gaza, after turmoil over the company’s presence in Israel and the West Bank. Earlier this year, Ben & Jerry’s claimed in court that its parent company ousted longtime CEO David Stever over his support for progressive activism, sparking protests from employees.
“That is not the Ben & Jerry’s that we founded,” Cohen and Greenfield wrote in Tuesday’s open letter. “Ben & Jerry’s has become successful precisely because people know it stands for something deeper than ice cream.”
The pair also addressed prospective investors, urging them to reconsider their involvement with Magnum and advising them that the founders, as well as many employees and customers, no longer support the direction of the company under current management.
“We intend to campaign for an independent Ben and Jerry’s, owned by values-aligned investors,” Cohen and Greenfield said.
